How JustAnswer Works:

Experts are full of valuable knowledge and are ready to help with any question. Credentials confirmed by a Fortune 500 verification firm.

Get a Professional Answer

Via email, text message, or notification as you wait on our site.Ask follow up questions if you need to.

100% Satisfaction Guarantee

Rate the answer you receive.

Ask Dr. Dan M. Your Own Question

Dr. Dan M., Veterinarian

Category: Cat

Satisfied Customers: 1459

Experience: Small Animal Veterinary Surgeon

23462335

Type Your Cat Question Here...

Dr. Dan M. is online now

I have a 9 year old cat, Chloe, who for the past few days has

Customer Question

I have a 9 year old cat, Chloe, who for the past few days has been retching/gagging at the exact same time every morning, between 4 - 6am. She never produces more than bile or saliva. Afterwards, she acts completely normal- all day she eats, drinks, uses the litterbox, plays with toys, runs over for her treats, cuddles, etc. This has only ever happened first thing in the morning, after she wakes up from a deep sleep of typically 4 - 5 hours.

The first three mornings, when this happened, she had also just eaten- very, very quickly. When I go downstairs with her at this time, she gets very excited and gobbles food down (on an empty stomach). Then she went to sleep beside me, and within the hour, woke up and started retching.

We took her to the vet two days ago, who examined her and said it was likely because of the fast eating, that it was probably something involving stomach acid and to give her smaller portions and 1/2 tablet of Pepcid at night. She said Chloe had no masses in her stomach, didn't seem to be in any pain, her mouth/gums looked good, she had no fever, etc.

This morning, however, Chloe had been sleeping for four hours or so, didn't gobble down any food (we've since been taking it away at night), and still woke up and vomited just a bit of saliva. It was at the exact same time. She did eat a little at 11pm, but not fast, and not too much.

I'm very confused, since if this was because of the overeating/lying down right after eating, why would it happen now? She's only been on the Pepcid two nights, and both nights we had trouble getting her to take it- we crushed the pill and hid it in cream cheese but I'm not sure she got much of it (she figured it out quickly). We're getting pill pockets for tonight. Still, it's very strange. She's completely happy and normal all day long- you would never know anything was wrong except for that window of time in the very early morning.

Should we continue to give her the Pepcid (more successfully from now on) and see how she is for a couple of days? She gets very stressed at the vet, and I hate to take her a second time if it's nothing.

There are many things that cause vomiting and these can be gastrointestinal in origin or non gastrointestinal (other organ disease, hormonal problems or metabolic disease).

The priority is that Chloe is bright and alert and eating and drinking normally which she is and this is great news.

Gastrointestinal causes include parasites, dietary indiscretion, gastritis (inflammation of the stomach) pancreatitis, liver disease and inflammation of the intestines as well as physical obstructions (foreign bodies).

The regular occurrence of this vomiting may indicate and gastritis as it may be exacerbated when rising from sleep. I would be comfortable with you carrying on with the Pepcid for a few days and seeing if things settle. But you must get her checked if it is becoming more frequent or she is becoming quiet and reclusive or is not eating or drinking. This would require further investigation such as blood tests and possible x rays, but I suspect she will settle.

Chloe seems to be doing a little better. This definitely only happens as soon as she's woken up from a longer sleep (4 - 6 hours uninterrupted). As soon as she wakes from a longer sleep, she retches/gags saliva or bile, and then she is 100% normal the other 99% of the day. Eats, drinks, uses the litterbox, everything.

She went 36 hours without doing it (the longest so far). She didn't do it Sunday morning, but did it Sunday afternoon (we were out all afternoon, and she always sleeps when we're gone). Then she didn't do it Monday morning OR Monday afternoon. But she did it 4:30 this morning (Tuesday). It's less now, too- she gags one or two times, rather than four to six times during the first few days.

Also, when she did it Sunday afternoon, there was some hair mixed with bile, so I think maybe a hairball might have woken her? We found it right under the bed where she was sleeping.

So the constant here is that it's ALWAYS right after she's slept for a longer period of time. Upon waking, she does it, and then is totally fine all day. So it makes sense that, like you said, it could be exacerbated when rising from sleep. Do you have any idea WHY this might be happening? Why it bothers her ONLY after a longer sleep, and then all day, she's completely normal?

We thought we would let her take the Pepcid for at least a full week and see how she does. She's only taken the Pepcid three times so far. (Four will be tonight.) Our vet also mentioned that, if it didn't work, aside from doing blood tests just in case, it could have to do with her food (she's on a C/D prescription diet for bladder health). Do you think that's possible?

Thanks for your help,

Megan

PS: We have a cardboard scratcher that Chloe loves to lay on. A lot of times, she'll eat the little pieces of cardboard paper she pulls up. We took it away from her today. Could that bother her stomach?

It is a strange pattern and certainly hair balls will cause varying degrees of wretch from non-productive hacking to full blown vomiting.

Cardboard shouldn't cause this kind of problem unless she reacts badly to it (causing vomiting) or it could cause a more obstructive problem which would cause vomiting on a more persistent basis with or without an absence of faeces, so I wouldn't worry too much.

Certainly, if there is a sudden deterioration or other clinical signs develop bloods would be a good port of call as organ disease (particularly kidneys) can cause varying grades of vomiting.

Food can cause hypersensitivities or intolerances which can manifest as vomiting. This would be much more likely if the diet was new and coincided with the vomiting. Hills c/d shouldn't specifically cause vomiting.

The reasoning for the timing of the vomiting/wretch is bizarre and could ever be from a reduced consciousness (when awake the conscious control of vomiting and wretching maybe stronger than when asleep or first roused), when awake there are many distractions that occupy animals so often mild vomiting can be masked.

Again, it maybe positional in that laying on her side for a prolonged time increases stomach acidity/reflux into the oesophagus causing acting wretch which dependant on the stomach contents at that time will or will not be productive.

No problem seeing how things go, but definitely if there is no respite or things worsen then head back to your vets.

What Customers are Saying:

The response from the Expert literally saved my cat's life. Thank
you from the bottom of my heart -- I will recommend all of my friends to you!!!
LuciaRincon, Georgia

I will use your service again. I was very pleased with the response and the fact that you have a low cost option so that those of us on fixed income can have questions answered. I will also recommend you to others.
KarenJackson Heights, NY

You helped us to come to what we believe is a better next step in Jack's treatment, and hopefully have saved us $800!!
Thanks again!Jack's MomTuscon, AZ

The vet said that the information and my following it will be what made the difference. Thanks again for being so very helpful.TracyGrayson, LA

My oldest male cat had a seizure this evening. This site was the first place I could think of to go after the seizure had passed. Dr. Lucy was fantastic and she was spot on! DebbieUSA

I must tell you I found this site by accident and was amazed when I asked a question of the Veteranians online. I wish I could have found it sooner it could have made such a difference in the outcome of my pet's surgery. However, I am passing along the information to my sister-in-law (a cat-rescue person who is also a nurse), and perhaps it will help someone else who may experience the same problem.
The doctor who answered my question was amazing, and while it didn't come it time to change the outcome of my situation, it is reassuring to know the caliber of Vets/Doctors that you have at JustAnswer. Thank you for being there.Alice H.Jacksonville, Fl.

Ask a Cat Vet

Get a Professional Answer. 100% Satisfaction Guaranteed.

118 Cat Vets are Online Now

Type Your Cat Question Here...

characters left:

Disclaimer: Information in questions, answers, and other posts on this site ("Posts") comes from individual users, not JustAnswer; JustAnswer is not responsible for Posts. Posts are for general information, are not intended to substitute for informed professional advice (medical, legal, veterinary, financial, etc.), or to establish a professional-client relationship. The site and services are provided "as is" with no warranty or representations by JustAnswer regarding the qualifications of Experts. To see what credentials have been verified by a third-party service, please click on the "Verified" symbol in some Experts' profiles. JustAnswer is not intended or designed for EMERGENCY questions which should be directed immediately by telephone or in-person to qualified professionals.